About Mudcrutch
Tom Petty was in a Gainesville, FL band called Mudcrutch in the early 1970's. Some of the band lived on a farm by the same name. It was located in some woods off North 13th Street near Dub's bar, where the band was a regular act.

How the Band Formed
Ex-Epics members Tom Petty and Tom Leadon decided to form their own band, calling themself Mudcrutch. Later, Tom Petty recruited Randall Marsh on drums. The band needed a second guitarist and Marsh suggested Mike Campbell, who was his roommate in college at the time. Petty and Leadon later persuaded Campbell to join after hearing him play the song "Johnny B. Goode." Mike's quick finger action impressed Petty. Jim Lenahan was initially the lead singer in Mudcrutch, but after a short while left to go to college.

Road to Success
1971 - Petty, Campbell and Marsh organize the first "Mudcrutch Farm Festival." Due to the crowd the festival drew the land owners kicked the band off the property. Not to be discouraged, in '72 the band organized a second festival which drew an even larger crowd.

1973 - Mudcrutch records two tracks -- "Up In Mississippi" and "Cause Is Understood" at Criteria Studios in Miami, FL. They get boxes of 45s . Tom Leadon gets kicked out of the band due to a incident at Dub's bar, that got them fired from doing gigs there. Benmont Tench then joins the band to play piano. The band recruits a new guitarist named Danny Roberts and Mudcrutch's first demo tape is recorded in Benmont Tench's parent's living room.

1974 - Petty, Roberts and roadie Keith McAllister takes the demo tape to Los Angeles, CA and finds interest from various record labels there. Mudcrutch then later signs up with Danny Cordell's Shelter Records in Tulsa, Oklahoma and the band relocates to Los Angeles, CA to start record an album for Shelter Records, but the album was never released and the band breaks up. The result is "Depot Street" & "Wild Eyes" is released, the only Mudcrutch single to be made.

1975 - Petty forms a new backup band called the Heartbreakers, with Mike Campbell on guitar, Benmont Tench on keyboard, Ron Blair on bass, Stan Lynch on drums, and Jeff Jourard on guitar (Jourard was in the band for a very short time.) The rest you could call history...

Note: These vinyl's can be found occasionally on eBay, at flea markets, etc. The Rock Hall even has one. Authentic versions of these have the Shelter logo with yellow in it. Other versions are floating around without the yellow, which may indicate it is not genuine.

Notable Live Show Bootlegs:

Gainesville Auditorium 1971

1. Don't Send Me Letters
2. I Could Have Been More
3. Up in Mississippi
4. Honkytonkilicious
5. Mudcrutch Jam
6. Isn't it a Pity

The Rat - Gainesville, FL January 14, 1973

1. Rip It Up
2. Not Fade Away
3. Let The Guitars Sing
4. Keep On Singing
5. All Shook Up
6. That's What I'll Do
7. School Days - Hail Hail Rock & Roll
8. Long Way From Home
9. I've Been Trying, Baby
10. What Do You Want Me To Do
11. Shake Rattle & Roll